Creating an Unhealthy America is a Pre-existing Condition for the Right Wing

The House Republicans are set yet again to cast a symbolic vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which means that they support insurance companies excluding coverage to Americans with pre-existing conditions. According to the Wall Street Journal, that makes more than 30 times the GOP House has tried to nullify the law just recently upheld by the Supreme Clourt.

Of course, this also means rejection of insurance-covered preventive healthcare for Americans and all the other medical benefits of healthcare reform. The cynical political irony of this stance, as many have pointed out, is that the ACA is based on the plan Romney, the presidential standard bearer of the GOP, implemented in Massachusetts. The individual mandate, according to NPR, was first proposed by Republican senators.

Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, the GOP budget “guru” of the House, opposes even the requirement that insurance companies allow children to stay on family policies up to the age of 26. Ryan also continues to be a spokesperson for the contradictory argument that “this law is bad for Medicare” (a single payer government healthcare insurance program for seniors) while railing that the “Supreme Court has allowed this effective government takeover of health care.” Well, then why is Paul Ryan so supportive of Medicare, which is just such a program?

It’s once again important to point out that neither Medicare nor the ACA limit a person’s choice of medical care provider, which Ryan and the Republicans continue to claim. As a matter of fact, Medicare provides more medical options than most PPOs. And the ACA closes the “doughnut hole” gap in prescription coverage for seniors.

The right wing ability to laud Medicare but denounce the ACA is a magical feat of logical contradiction, even though the ACA will actually be a boon to private insurers.

If the Republicans are so bent on repealing the ACA, why don’t they replace it with a system they claim to love: single payer universal coverage.